Broken window led to library flood

The 70,000 gallons of water that flooded the boiler room in the library in the early morning hours of Jan. 26 could have been prevented, according to Building Needs and Utilities Committee member Michael Forance, who cited "lack of maintenance" as one of the culprits.

Forance said he was called last month because a window had broken on the basement level of the library, and instructed the library staff to get it fixed immediately.

"[We] noticed it was broken, and we put cardboard over it and someone was supposed to come from the town to repair it and they weren't able to," Forance said.

"We had called someone to come in and repair it, and unfortunately they were due in that Monday morning," said Library Director Patricia Campbell.

By the time a DPW employee shut off the main water valve, there was already approximately two inches of water on the floor.

Due to the flooding, the library was closed for three days.

"It was extremely cold that Sunday night, and the winds were strong," said Campbell. "It appears the cardboard blew off and the window was open … the water main pipe, which was directly below that, froze and burst."

The fire department was called to the scene and quickly diverted the water. The department called the DPW, which arrived to turn off the water main.

"We found a whole bunch of pipes broken," said DPW Water Operations Foreman Mark Semenuk, who said they knew the number of gallons that flooded the room because it had poured through the meter.

"We worked with the plumber before they could turn the water back on. They had the water back on the next morning, but there were a lot of repairs that had to be done."

"They acted quickly, and did a wonderful job," said Campbell. "In under an hour, it was all diverted into the drains and we cleaned up the rest of the water. Fortunately [none of the] building was damaged."

Campbell said the burner and some of the electrical controls were damaged, and ServiceMaster was called to install pipes and run dehumidifiers to dry out the walls and prevent mold and mildew. They sanitized the entire area. "Right now everything is back to normal," she said. All expenses have been covered by insurance.